Poker Card Scanning Recognition Software

The latest high-end cheating devices for playing cards involve the use of a camera to read invisible barcodes on each card. These barcodes, which are printed on the four sides of each card rather than the back, absorb infrared (IR) light when illuminated by hidden LEDs inside the device. This creates a sequence of black spots that are read remotely by the cheating device and used to infer each card’s suit and value.

These devices are often built into mobile phones and can be powered by a standard power bank. The camera is hidden in a slot on the side of the phone and the IR LEDs are positioned so that they can be seen by an unmodified smartphone camera with its IR passband filter removed. The camera is then used to transmit the scanned information to the device’s underlying hardware, which decodes the invisible markings and sends the results to a mobile app running on the phone.

There are some concerns that this kind of technology could lead to the eventual erosion of honest play. However, it seems unlikely that anyone would be willing to take advantage of a system like this for illicit purposes. Imagine an accomplice sitting at home in front of his monitor running Emotient and telling one player what he is thinking and feeling in real time during a live televised event. You’d probably cover your face or switch to a different browser tab.